Saying goodbye to expensive monitors during laparoscopic procedures

The essence

Together with medical device company BD and Dr. Tollens (general and abdominal surgeon at Imelda Hospital), we created a HoloLens application that visualizes laparoscopic footage in real-time. This allows Dr. Tollens and the Imelda hospital to remove all monitors in the OR. As medical devices are often extremely expensive, this saves the hospital a lot of money.

The challenge

Saving money on expensive medical equipment

As a general and abdominal surgeon, Dr. Tollens regularly performs laparoscopic surgeries. This is a surgical procedure that allows him to access the inside of the abdomen and pelvis, without having to make large incisions. He uses an instrument called a laparoscope that has a light source and a camera. To see what he’s doing, the camera footage is being sent in real-time to a high-definition monitor present in the OR.

It is required for every attendee in the OR to have a clear view of at least one high-definition screen. With the surgeon present, multiple assistants, an anesthetist, and often doctors in training, a lot of monitors are required. As with many medical equipment, it is extremely expensive. Therefore, Dr. Tollens was looking for a lower-cost alternative.

The Solution

In close collaboration with Dr. Tollens and the Imelda Hospital, we created a custom application for the HoloLens. We went for an AR solution as it still allows Dr. Tollens to clearly see his real-life surroundings while wearing the device. On top of that, the HoloLens is an untethered stand-alone computer, which allows Dr. Tollens to move around in the OR undisrupted if necessary. The application we built visualizes laparoscopic footage in real-time. Just like the monitors do.

The result

Bye bye expensive monitors

Dr. Tollens already performed several laparoscopic surgeries while using the HoloLens. Of course, for safety reasons, several monitors were present is the OR as a backup. But, we’re proud to say that they haven’t been used. This results in gigantic savings for the hospital.

Fun fact: we also learned that it’s an ergonomically improvement for everyone who wears the HoloLens versus looking up at the screens.